Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Roasted Almonds

vegetarianeasy recipesquick recipessalad recipes

Aug 5

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The quest to find the to finding the perfect salad recipe to easily get together with lots of flavour is over! This **Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Roasted Almonds** is crunchy, tasty, and so fresh! It’s guaranteed to be a new favourite!

Do you tell yourself you’ll eat more fruits and veggies but never get around to it? I can relate, but I have to admit when I’ve got the opportunity to make this easy Goat Cheese Salad, I’m actually excited to dig in! I would describe this salad as the ultimate light side dish! You can pair it with something on the heavier side to balance the meal out, like Chicken Parmesan, or just have an all-around nutritious meal by pairing your salad with a light source of protein, such as my Oven-Baked Lemon and Herb Salmon! I’ve got plenty more serving and pairing ideas later on in this post, so stay tuned!

It’s never too late to discover something nutritious and easy on the stomach that’s also extremely delicious that you can include as part of your regular dinner rotation! If you want to check off including salad more regularly on your bucket list, then trying out this incredible arugula salad as part of your Live to Cook one-month challenge!

To see how this super delicious Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Roasted Almonds comes together, be sure to watch the video at the bottom of this post! It would also mean a lot if you would please subscribe to my YouTube if you haven’t already and press the bell button to be notified when all of my video recipes go live! Let’s get started!

What is Arugula?

Arugula, also known as rocket, rucola, or roquette, is a leafy green deep in colour with pointy notches along the sides. It has a slightly bitter and tart flavour, and the stems are crisp. Arugula is commonly served in raw salad recipes, but it can also be cooked to be added into soups, pastas and pizzas.

Arugula is actually my favourite green! I like how it’s crunchy and flavourful. Also, I have to admit that I just love the name “rocket!” I don’t particularly like the taste of kale and spinach tastes like mud. Additionally, lettuce tastes like water. What I love about arugula is that it actually tastes great on its own, and while I don’t eat salads very often, arugula makes me want to get in my greens! If you’ve got a picky eater, I recommend you show them the world of arugula, and this goat cheese salad recipe is the perfect way to get started! As I mention in my free motivational guide, Making Cooking Fun!!, you should be setting smart goals. For myself, I know I’m not going to pack in a ton of greens in a lot of my cooking since it’s really hard to like them. However, if I’ve got arugula in the fridge (check out the guide to learn more about how having an awareness of the ingredients in your fridge and pantry can spark creativity too!), then I look forward to using it up! If you haven’t found your favourite green yet, I strongly encourage you to give arugula a fair chance!

Dietary Information For Goat Cheese Salad

Our Arugula Goat Cheese Salad is…

Vegetarian
Low-carb
Gluten-free

Tools Needed to Make Arugula Goat Cheese Salad

Ingredients For Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Roasted Almonds

The FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD is available at the bottom of this post with individual ingredient quantities and to save the recipe for later! You can also scale the recipe based on how many portions of salad you’re looking to make! By default, this recipe is considering two side-dish portions.

Arugula: Make sure your arugula is chilled before so it has a nice crunch.
Almonds: These will be roasted then chopped.
Olive oil: The base for the salad dressing that adds lots of flavour and is full of healthy fats to promote heart health and reduce bad cholesterol!
Lemon: Juice of half a lemon to add some freshness and zing to the dressing.
Dijon mustard: Adds a great tart flavour to the dressing. A small amount goes a long way!
Apple cider vinegar
Goat cheese: Really one of my favourite parts of this salad, and I encourage you not to skimp out! I love the flavour and texture!
Raspberries: They’ll have to be fresh for this recipe.
Salt and pepper: Always to taste! I recommend freshly grated black peppercorns for best flavour.

How to Make Healthy Goat CHeese Salad

For the dijon dressing

Add all the ingredients to a bowl and whisk well to combine. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper or any other flavourings. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Preheat oven at 350 F and add raw almonds to a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 8-12 minutes or until lightly roasted. Let them cool slightly before roughly chopping into smaller pieces.

In a large bowl, add the chilled arugula, salad dressing and half of the almonds. Toss using tongs to combine well.

Option 1: Add the goat cheese to the bowl and mix well until creamy. Serve the salad and top with more roasted almonds and raspberries.

Option 2: Serve the salad and distribute small dollops of goat cheese around the salad, followed by more roasted almonds and raspberries.

Tips & Tricks To Make the perfect Salad

Instead of getting pre-roasted almonds, I highly suggest you roast them yourself. The flavour is unlike anything else!
Keep the arugula in the fridge until ready to use. Wash, clean and refrigerate the arugula until ready to use so that the greens are at their freshest and crispiest for the salad.
It’s better to overestimate the size of the bowl needed to toss the salad. You need the extra space to make sure that everything mixes well without crushing any of the ingredients.
Serve the Arugula Goat Cheese Salad immediately as the crispy greens won’t sit well in the dressing for too long.

Variations of Goat Cheese Salad

Nuts: Instead of roasted almonds, you could do walnuts, hazelnuts, peanuts or pecans.
Cheese: If you’re not big on unripened goat cheese, then try out feta, Parmesan, blue cheese, Swiss cheese, Gruyere or even old white cheddar.
Protein: This salad is vegetarian so it can act as a side dish. You can pair it with a protein main (I give some ideas below!), or add in some shredded poached chicken, pieces of grilled salmon, garlic-butter shrimp, or even some tofu!
Dressing: If you want some sweetness, you could also add in some honey to the dressing.
Berries: Freshly sliced strawberries, blackberries, or blueberries would be great in here too!
Fruit: This salad would also be excellent with fruit! Try pieces of tangerine, pears, or apple spices.
Veggies: Chopped tomatoes and thinly sliced onions would be great here. You could also chop up some bell peppers.
Leafy greens: If you don’t have or don’t like arugula, then try out watercress, spinach, or even romaine lettuce.
Other toppings: For more heart healthy fats to keep you satisfied and a nice crunch, try pumpkin seeds, hemp hearts, or sunflower seeds. You could even add some pieces of avocado or make a tasty guacamole, such as my Classic Guacamole or Chunky Mango Guacamole!

What to Serve with Arugula Salad

This Goat Cheese Arugula Salad is super versatile that you can serve it with pretty much any protein of your choice! here are just a handful of dishes that would pair perfectly with the salad:

Other Fresh and Easy Salad Recipes!

Watch How to Make Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Roasted Almonds Here:

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vegetarian, Salad, Healthy, Lunch

American

Yield: 2

Author: Anadi

Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Roasted Almondshttps://youtu.be/oLOGsWXS5agThis arugula goat cheese salad with roasted almonds is healthy and easy to make! Learn how to prepare the roasted almonds and how to prepare the salad with a quick homemade olive oil and Dijon dressing, topped with goat cheese and raspberries.2023-08-05

Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Roasted Almonds

The quest to find the to finding the perfect salad recipe to easily get together with lots of flavour is over! This Arugula Goat Cheese Salad with Roasted Almonds is crunchy, tasty, and so fresh! It’s guaranteed to be a new favourite!

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 12 MinTotal time: 27 Min

Ingredients

For the dijon dressing (Makes ~6 Tbsp)

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 1/2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste

For the salad

2-3 Tbsp dijon dressing
6 oz arugula, chilled
1-2 Tbsp roasted almonds, roughly chopped
2 Tbsp goat cheese
3-5 raspberries per serving
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

For the dijon dressing

Add all the ingredients to a bowl and whisk well to combine. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper or any other flavourings. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the salad

Preheat oven at 350 F and add raw almonds to a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 8-12 minutes or until lightly roasted. Let them cool slightly before roughly chopping into smaller pieces.
In a large bowl, add the chilled arugula, salad dressing and half of the almonds. Toss using tongs to combine well.
Option 1: Add the goat cheese to the bowl and mix well until creamy. Serve the salad and top with more roasted almonds and raspberries.
Option 2: Serve the salad and distribute small dollops of goat cheese around the salad, followed by more roasted almonds and raspberries.